A new group that aims to act as Mothers Against Drunk Driving does to support families of DUI crash victims, has just been launched in Washington. FocusDriven is meant to support families of persons killed in auto accidents involving a distracted driver. It’s part of the nationwide campaign against distracted driving, and it aims to a give a voice to victims of such crashes, who have not had enough attention paid to them till now.

The launch of the group was accompanied by new statistics by the National Safety Council that indicates that 28 percent of all accidents involve motorists distracted by their cell phones. Approximately 1.3 million accidents are caused by persons having a conversation on their cell phone behind the wheel, while 200,000 accidents are caused by text messaging drivers. Every year, these accidents kill more than 2,500 people.  It’s the families of these victims that FocusDriven will give a voice to.

The group also plans to pressurize states that have failed to take the texting and talking on the cell phone issues, seriously enough. Several states this year are dealing with legislations relating to bans on text messaging and the use of handheld cell phones. They might face additional pressure from groups like FocusDriven when the time comes for a vote.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving has expanded from being a victims support advocacy group to an influential voice for stronger laws against drunk driving, ignition interlock devices and other DUI issues.  I hope FocusDriven can make the same contribution in the fight against distracted driving.  Most importantly, the organization will be able to act as a mouthpiece for the silent victims of distracted driving crashes, allowing them to speak out strongly against inattentive driving. 

Scott Grossman is a Monmouth County auto accident lawyer, representing injured victims of auto accidents in Freehold, Marlboro, Aberdeen, Howell, and across Monmouth County.

The New York Times report includes a survey that a research team at the Ohio State University conducted into the risks of distractions in pedestrians. The study found that in 2008, more than 1,000 pedestrians suffered injuries in accidents caused by text messaging or talking on the cell phone while walking.  The survey found that young pedestrians were more likely to be injured because of such distractions, with 50 percent of injuries resulting in emergency room visits occurring in people under the age of 30. At least 25 percent of emergency room visits from cell phone use-related accidents were pedestrians between 16 and 20 years old. However, a quarter of the pedestrians who were injured were between 41 and 60 years. This means that it’s not just young pedestrians who are more likely to run into stationary objects, fall into potholes, trip over sidewalks or suffer other accidents because of distractions. 

This seems to indicate that merely having a conversation - as the students walking in pairs were doing - is not the main cause of inattentiveness. Talking on a cell phone likely produces mental images that are connected to the conversation the person is having, and these images likely inhibit the mind’s ability to process real life images.

Scott Grossman is a Monmouth County auto accident lawyer, representing injured victims of auto accidents in Freehold, Marlboro, Aberdeen, Howell, and across Monmouth County.

Those are very encouraging statistics, and we need to keep the momentum going. It would really help if our law enforcement officers set an example for the state.

Scott Grossman is a Monmouth County car accident lawyer representing injured victims of car crashes in Freehold, Marlboro, Howell, Manalapan, Aberdeen and around Monmouth County.

Motorists in New Jersey are most likely to die in an accident between the hours of 5 and 6 pm on a warm Saturday in August, if you go by nationwide statistics by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). This report in Forbes, offers a startling look into how people are dying in accidents in America. For instance, Saturday is the most dangerous day of the week to be out and about, and August the most dangerous month of the year. However, the worst time you could be on the road is on the Fourth of July. In 2007, the accident death toll on this one day alone touched 926. Not surprisingly, the country's biggest traveling holiday, Thanksgiving, is also its most dangerous weekend to be on the roads. At least 32 percent of those who died in accidents were speeding at the time of the crash, and 55 percent of them were not wearing seatbelts at the time.

In Monmouth County we have very busy roads and highways including Route 9, the Garden State Parkway, and the NJ turnpike.  In Bergen County we have of course route 17, route 4, route 80 and route 46 to name a few of the major traveled roadways. 

So much for the bad news. So, is there any time you are safe on the road? Sure - if you restrict all your driving to Tuesdays or Wednesdays, and only get behind the wheel between 4 and 5 am. If that's not practical, there are other ways that you can to try to ensure that you don't end up as part of accident statistics, and they are all pretty simple. 

• Buckle up. Every time.
• Switch off the cell phone.
• Stay within speed limits.
• Never, but never, drink and drive.

Thankfully, the report shows that an overwhelming number of accidents – close to 95 percent - occur because of human error, and not because of mechanical malfunction. It just proves what Monmouth County car accident lawyers knew all along – that accidents can be prevented if all motorists focus their attention on the road, and the other motorists who might be around them.

 As a Monmouth County and New Jersey car accident attorney I have represented hundreds of victims that suffered critical injuries because of alcohol related car accidents.  This news story above highlights a all too common scenario whereby alcohol appears to have impaired this driver’s sense of judgment. The alleged intoxicated driver may have destroyed the lives of these innocent grocery shoppers who never would have imagined that they would fall victim to a drunk driver while going through their normal every day routine of pushing their grocery carts at their local supermarket.  Drinking and driving frequently leads to victim's extreme suffering.  I have witnessed first hand clients that have suffered at the hands of drunk drivers’ : traumatic brain injury, loss of limbs, spinal cord injuries including paralysis fractures, herniated disc injuries leading to spinal fusion or inter-body fusion surgery and a myriad of other life altering injuries and even death.  So as a seasoned New Jersey and Monmouth County accident attorney lawyer I can attest unequivocally that alcohol mixed with driving of motor vehicles, motorcycles or trucks many times equates with the total destruction of innocent life and also destroys both individuals and their families.  We can significantly reduce the number of serious injuries and fatalities in New Jersey by never ever driving while intoxicated or in any way impaired.  

State Police Deputy Superintendent of Operations Juan Mattos said, "Four of the seven fatal motor vehicle accidents on Memorial Day 2007 were alcohol related. This is a pointless waste of lives we will attempt to avoid by relentlessly pursuing intoxicated drivers." Superintendent Fuentes added "We can only do so much to encourage safe behavior. In the end, New Jersey's drivers must decide to act responsibly."

As a Monmouth County and New Jersey auto accident lawyer attorney, I have witnessed over the past decade the horrific shattering of lives far too often as the direct result of alcohol consumption while driving cars, trucks and motorcycles. Obviously, we should never ever drink and drive. More safety tips can be found at The American Society of Civil Engineers link and I hope this information will be useful and if applied may even help to reduce the number of traffic related fatalities and severe injuries.